


Through The Eyes Of Love

by Jorun



Series: True Love [2]
Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-24
Updated: 2021-02-21
Packaged: 2021-03-10 18:29:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,425
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28291665
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jorun/pseuds/Jorun
Summary: Rose sighed deeply, already tuning out her friends endless bickering. Lately the monotone routine of her life had started to bother her more than usual. When she was younger she'd had all these plans, she was going to travel and see the world, meet interesting people and fall in love. Now here she was, 22 years old, still living at home and working in a shop.
Relationships: Tenth Doctor/Rose Tyler, The Doctor (Doctor Who)/Rose Tyler
Series: True Love [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/138054
Comments: 2
Kudos: 48





	1. Prologue

## Prologue

It was a beautiful December evening, London was lit up with Christmas lights and snow was falling giving the landscape an almost fairy tale feeling.

John tore his gaze from the scenery outside the window to take in the atmosphere in the small but elegant restaurant. There were mostly couples and nearly every table was occupied, despite it being the day before Christmas. He turned his attention back to his own table when he realized someone was addressing him.

"John! You could at least pretend to find our company interesting," his father rebuked jokingly.

"There is nowhere else in the world I'd rather be than with all of you," he assured him.

"Oh, it warms my heart to hear you say that. We've hardly seen you these last few weeks, have we Verity?" Sidney Smith reflected to his wife.

"I'm sure the boy has been busy, dear. You don't become successful without working hard."

"Yeah, yeah, we all know genius boy is destined for great things," John’s brother Harry teased, a slight bitterness tainting his voice.

His brother was a genius in his own right, the man was an MP for god’s sake. But being constantly overshadowed by his younger brother since primary school had always been a sore spot for Harry and created tension between the two brothers.

John was grateful that their rivalry these days consisted mostly of the occasional snide remark and good-natured teasing. A lot of that was because of Donna, ever since she and Harry started dating John had noticed that his brother had mellowed considerably and seemed much more happy and secure in himself. And he knew the same thing applied to Donna.

Still he couldn't help the twinge of envy he felt when he saw them together. It wasn't that he begrudged his brother his happiness, quite the contrary. He adored Donna and already saw her as the sister he never had. He just couldn't help but wonder if he would ever find what they had. Of course he'd been in love before, had girlfriends, but he'd never meet someone who made him feel that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with that person. He had certainly never looked at anyone the way Harry was currently looking at Donna, like she was the most important person in the universe.

As the waiter arrived with their desserts his father cleared his throat and stood up. "I want to propose a toast. I've always been grateful for my sons and now I’m fortunate enough to be getting a daughter as well. Donna, we are delighted to welcome you to the family. To the happy couple!"

"The happy couple!" the rest of the company chorused in.

"I suggest you go easy on that pudding Donna, you still need to fit in to your wedding dress tomorrow," Sylvia Noble chided, as she critically eyed her daughter’s plate.

"Gee, thanks mother," Donna snarled through clenched teeth.

Harry looked like he was about to come to his fiancés defence, but luckily for everyone Donnas grandfather Wilf beat him to it. "Don’t listen to her sweetheart, you enjoy your dessert."

The remainder of the evening passed pleasantly, and they were among the last to leave the restaurant. By then the snow was coming down heavily and the temperature had dropped considerably. Harry and Donna had retreated to a secluded corner, both reluctant to say goodbye for the night. John and his parents took refuge in the car to escape the biting cold.

"John, did I tell you the Curtis’s daughter is going to be at the wedding?" his mother inquired, giving him a piercing look he recognized far too well.

"Yes, and I’m sure she is lovely, but I’m not interested."

"I’m not saying you have to ask her out, but you could at least talk to her. You two have a lot in common. How are you going to meet anyone if you don’t but in an effort?"

John sighed deeply. "I’m just… waiting for the right person."

"I know. I’m just worried you’re so focused on your work that you’ll miss the right girl when she does come along. She’s not just going to appear out of the blue you know. You have to put in some effort, John. You haven’t been serious about a girl since Romana and that was years ago."

Luckily he was spared from continuing the conversation as his brother threw open the car door, joining him in the backseat.

The roads were mostly empty, the weather making people reluctant about taking to the roads. The snow made it hard to see so forcing them to drive slowly, making the journey home take longer than usual.

"I should have gone home with Donna," his brother moaned.

"It’s bad luck to see the bride before the wedding," their mother stated, clearly feeling that was reason enough.

"All these wedding traditions are just idiotic superstitions," Harry muttered, clearly displeased with the situation.

"Can't manage one night without her?" John teased, amused to see his brother blush.

"I think Donna’s mother might claw your eyes out if you showed up at their house tonight," their father chuckled. "I don't think I've ever met a more frightening woman."

"And from tomorrow she will be your mother-in-law," John declared dramatically. "Oh, the things we do for love."

"Speaking of love Doctor, have our mother managed to persuade you to letting her set you up with the Curtis daughter?"

The retort on the tip of John’s tongue was lost as his vision was suddenly blinded as a flood of bright white light poured through the car's front window. It was quickly followed by the piercing sound of tires shrieking and in the next moment the world was turned upside down. He could hear metal crunching, the tinkling of glass being shattered and his mother letting out a deafening scream. The last thing he was aware of was a blinding, excruciating, white-hot pain that pierced through his head, and then the darkness swallowed him.


	2. Chapter 2

**5 Years Later**

Rose was not having a good day. For starters her alarm clock hadn't gone off this morning, so she had to skip showering and hurriedly chomp down a piece of toast for breakfast. Then she realized they were out of coffee so she had no choice but to forgo her morning caffeine boost. She had barely made it to work in time and then of course Adam hadn't deemed showing up at all, so she had to work through her lunch break.

Which is why she was now impatiently tapping her foot against the floor, waiting for the barista to finish her Cafe Latte. She was supposed to meet Mickey and Shareen at the pub in ten minutes and there was no way she would make it through a whole night of their bickering without a decent cup of coffee.

Finally with the drink in her hand, she barely spared a polite thanks to the cashier before hurrying out of the shop. The moment she stepped out the doors she found herself colliding into a solid body, sending her crashing to the ground and her coffee spilling all over the pavement.

"Oi! Watch it mate," she spat at the man currently sprawled out on the ground next to her.

"Sorry, I'm so sorry," the man apologized as he scurried back up on his feet.

"Well I should hope so, that was a five quid coffee you just cost me," she grunted as she pushed herself up on slightly unsteady legs.  
  
"I really am sorry," the man apologized again.She felt her anger start to fade at his genuinely apologetic tone, not to mention that he was quite easy on the eyes. "Yeah well, you may want to look where you're going in the future."

The man let out a small chuckle in response which refueled her irritation, that is until she looked at him properly and noticed the dark glasses and the white cane he was holding in his hand.

"Oh my god," she gasped as realization dawned on her.

"Are you alright?" the man asked, his eyebrows furrowed in concern.

"My god, you're-" she cut herself off from finishing the sentence, shame at her behaviour washing over her. "I'm so sorry, I didn't realize."

"That's quite alright," he assured her, but she couldn’t help but notice how his expression seemed to dim a little. "You wouldn't be able to guide me in the direction of the Torchwood building? I seem to have lost my bearings a bit."

"Of course, it's just a bit up ahead." She pointed in the direction she meant and then cringed at her own stupidity, at least he was unaware of her blunder. "You know what, why don't I walk with you. It's just on my way." Technically it was the opposite direction of where she was going but he didn't need to know that.

An awkward silence stretched between them as they walked. Rose was frantically searching for something to say but it seemed that she had managed to forget the entire English language.

Thankfully, her walking companion spoke up. "Just so you know I don't usually go knocking down people in the street. As a matter of fact, you're the first, which I suppose isn't really a great compliment but-"

"No, it was my fault. I wasn’t paying attention," she interrupted, his babbling putting her slightly more at ease. Quicker than she’d expected they had arrived at a multi-storey office building, a sign saying Torchwood situated over the entrance. "Here we are."

"Thank you. I appreciate your assistance, and again I'm sorry about your coffee." He turned and began walking towards the entrance, then came to a stop and turned back towards her. "What was your name?"

"Rose. Rose Tyler."

"Nice to meet you Rose Tyler," he said smiling, then he turned away once again and proceeded into the building.

She watched him walk away, her eyes involuntarily drifting to check out his bum. Shaking herself out of her pondering, a quick glance at her clock sent her scurrying. She was in desperate need of a drink.

* * *

She was twenty minutes late when she finally arrived at the Bad Wolf pub. After ordering a plate of chips she made her way over to her friends who were already in a heated discussion about which is the best football team, a debate that Rose had heard countless of times before.

"Nice of you to show up," Shareen quipped, as Rose sat down next to her.

"Don't even start," Rose growled, she was in no mood for a verbal sparring match.

"Bad day, babe?" Mickey inquired.

"The worst. I overslept, I had to skip lunch, I had to cover Adams ass all day and then I literally ran into a blind man."

"Sounds like you need some TLC," Mickey suggested with a wink.

"Sounds like you need a drink," Shareen interjected. "It's that slut Jessica’s fault, she has Adam wrapped around her little finger, he does whatever she asks him too."

Rose resisted rolling her eyes. Shareen had had her eye on Adam since he began working at Henrik's a few months ago, although Rose couldn't understand why. Adam was good looking for sure, but his personality took away the appeal of his pretty face.

"Adam's a twat," Mickey muttered in irritation.

"You're just jealous," Shareen countered.

"Of that idiot?"

And they were off. Rose sighed deeply, already tuning out her friends endless bickering. Lately the monotone routine of her life had started to bother her more than usual. It wasn't that her life was bad, she was young and healthy, had good friends that she loved and a job that paid the bills. It was just the thought that this was all there was; wake up, go to work, listen to Mickey and Shareen quarrel, go home and sleep, wake up and repeat it all the next day. When she was younger she'd had all these plans, she was going to travel and see the world, meet interesting people and fall in love. Now here she was, 22 years old, still living at home and working in a shop.

"You twat!" Shareen’s sudden outburst brought Rose out of her musings and back to the present.

She looked to Mickey for an explanation as Shareen stormed of, but he merely shrugged his shoulders. "What did I say?"

Shareen was back three minutes later with a new set of drinks for everyone, her squabble with Mickey already long forgotten and the rest of the night passed quietly enough.

A few hours later Rose and Mickey were walking home to the estate, the brisk night air clearing her head from the pleasant buzz the drinks had provided.

"What's got you down, babe?" Mickey inquired.

"Nothing. I just feel... restless."

She didn't expect him to understand. Mickey had never shared her longing for something more, she suspected he was perfectly content with his life the way it was. They had dated on and off again ever since secondary school, she had broken things off a few months ago feeling that the only reason they were still together was because it was familiar and convenient. She loved Mickey and cherished his friendship, but she felt as if their romantic relationship had come to an end for good, a sentiment she feared Mickey didn't share. Recently he had been dropping hints that he wanted to start things up again, but so far she’d been putting off dealing with it, not wanting to hurt his feelings.

Entering the grounds to the estate Mickey casually went to put his arm around her shoulders, she sidestepped his advances by reaching into her purse and searching for her keys.

"So… looks like your dad is asleep," prompted Mickey, gesturing to the dark window of her apartment. "Want to crash at my place?"

"No, thanks," she declined, trying to soften her rejection with a smile, "he sleeps like a log anyway. It would take a bomb going off to wake him up."

"Right."

"Good night," she said, giving him one last smile before heading up the stairs.

"Night, I’ll see you tomorrow."

* * *

The next day she was in a slightly better mood, mostly because it was finally Friday and another gruelling work week was coming to an end. Which meant she had yet another weekend of sleeping in and eating junk food to look forward to, she just had to get through the rest of her shift.

Which is why after a quick lunch she made another trip to the coffee shop. She was reaching into her handbag to get her wallet out, when suddenly an arm reached past her and put a fiver on the counter. She turned and was greeted by a familiar face with a gentle smile and some really great hair.

"For the coffee I owe you," he explained.

She regained her bearings just in time to utter a quick, "Thanks," before he was out the door. She stared after him in bewilderment until she heard someone clearing their throat next to her. She turned back to find the cashier looking at her impatiently and holding out her coffee.

She made her way back to Henrik’s slowly, her mind miles away and the coffee already forgotten. She spent the rest of her work shift trying to get him off her mind, but found that her thoughts keep returning to this mysterious stranger. Who was he? How had he known she was in the coffee shop? Had he been there waiting for her?

It wasn't until Adam managed to knock over three racks of shirts and she somehow ended up being the one to have to stack it back up that she found her thoughts occupied with far less pleasant things.


	3. Chapter 3

When Rose finally arrived home, all she wanted was to crawl up on the couch with her favourite book and a pizza. The only problem with that plan was that the book was nowhere to be found. 

She had been reading it last night at the couch when she had gotten a phone call from Shareen. After searching through the clutter on the coffee table, between the couch cushions, under the couch and behind the couch she was running out of places to look. It had to be here somewhere.

The sound of the front door opening and closing signalled that her father had arrived home.

"Dad, have you seen my book?"

"What’s that love?" her father asked. He was carrying a large cardboard box, no doubt containing his latest invention that was going to earn him the big bucks.

"My book, New Earth. I could have sworn I left it on the coffee table."

"Oh."

She felt dread start to build up at his sheepish expression. "What?"

"I sold some things yesterday, there was a bunch of old books on the coffee table, it might have gotten mixed up in there."

"You sold it?" 

"We need the money."

"It was mom’s book." Her voice broke and tears pricked at the corners of her eyes that she desperately tried to blink away.

"I know, I’m sorry love."

Not sure she would be able to speak without starting to cry she nodded her head and then rapidly fled from the apartment. She rushed down the stairs and out on the courtyard, stopping at the old playground and taking a seat at one of the swings. This playground had been one of the daily fixtures in her life when she was a kid. She could still vividly remember the sense of freedom when her dad would push her on the swing; Rose begging him to push her higher and her mother worried that she would fall and hurt herself. Some days she would give almost anything to feel that carefree again, like anything was possible and she could sprout wings and fly if she wished hard enough. These days she felt more like she was drowning and nobody seemed to notice her fighting for breath.

She'd been sitting there lost in her thoughts for about ten minutes when she heard footsteps approaching. She looked up and gave Mickey a small smile as he sat down on the swing next to her. They sat in silent for a moment, Mickey no doubt picking up on her dejected mood.

"Dad sold my book."

He furrowed his brows in puzzlement. "What book?"

"My mom's old book." She didn't elaborate, he knew the story behind it.

"You can always buy a new one, they're having a sale at Foyles," he told her, attempting to cheer her up. "It's just a book Rose."

"Yeah." She knew he was just trying to help, but right now she just wished he could be a little more sympathetic. Deciding to change the subject she told him, "Trisha told me that Henrik's is looking to hire a new assistant store manager. I think I'm going to apply for it."

"Are you qualified for that?"

She shrugged her shoulders, not bothering to answer. Truth was she wasn't qualified for the job, she wasn't qualified for any job really. That's what you got for having no A-levels. But she'd been working at Henrik's for over four years now was hoping that would work in her favour. She knew Mr van Statten preferred hiring people from within the company rather than bringing in someone new.

"Do you want to... get something to eat? Watch some TV at my place?" Mickey asked, a hopeful smile on his face.

"No, I'm pretty tired. Think I'm just going to call it an early night." She felt a stab of guilt as his expression fell, she was aware that she had been avoiding spending time alone with him lately but she didn’t want to give him the impression that she wanted to pick things up again. 

"Guess I'll see you tomorrow then?"

"Yeah, I'm meeting Shareen at five o'clock to help her buy some things for her party next week, then we thought we might check out the new Thai place."

"Sounds good."

After saying goodbye to Mickey she made her way back up to the apartment. Her dad was sitting in the kitchen, his latest project spread out on the kitchen table.

"Hey," he greeted her with a small smile. "I really am sorry, sweetheart."

"I know. I was going to order a pizza, you want one?"

"You read my mind." With that he turned his attention back to his project and Rose knew the subject wouldn't be brought up again.

* * *

Her Saturday plans of eating leftover pizza and watching reruns of EastEnders where bitterly interrupted when Trisha called and begged Rose to take her shift. Although working on her day off was the last thing she wanted she couldn't really afford to say no.

Henrik’s was always extra busy on the weekends and as today was the first day of the spring sale it was even more hectic than usual. After being on her feet all day she'd been looking forward to sitting down and enjoying a cup of coffee before walking home, but the coffee shop was completely packed with people. 

She ordered her usual and looked around for an empty table; that's when she spotted him, seated at a booth by the window. She hesitated for a moment before making her way over to him. Coming closer she noticed a yellow Labrador laying at his feet under the table. Unsure of how to make him aware of her presence she shifted on her feet for a second. 

Something must have alerted him however as he turned his head towards her and smiled, "Hello?"

"Hi. Can I sit here?"

"Yeah, of course."

She slid into the seat opposite him. "I'm Rose, we... we meet the other day."

"Yeah, I remember," he held out his hand in greeting. "I’m John."

She shook his hand and felt an unexpected warmth rush through her. "Thanks again for the coffee, John."

He smiled sheepishly, "Figured I owed you."

She blushed as she was reminded about her rude behaviour from the other day, feeling the need to apologize for her attitude. "I'm sorry about snapping at you, I was having a bad day and I took it out on you."

"It's fine, really," he reassured her.

A slightly awkward silence followed as she struggled with what to say next. A movement underneath the table caught her attention and she saw a wet nose and big round brown eyes looking up at her. "Cute dog."

His smile this time was more tender as he reached down to give the dog a gentle pat on the head. "Her name's Bessie, best companion a person could have." Another silence followed until he asked, "So, I take it you like this place?" gesturing with his hand to show that he meant the café.

"Yeah it's great, best coffee in town."

"Seems like the rest of the town agrees."

She laughed in agreement, "Yeah, I usually come in before work, it's less crowded."

"Where do you work?"

"Henrik’s, the department store, it's right across the street." Starting to feel more relaxed at his easy manner she inquired, "What do you do?"

"I teach at TARDIS University, well, technically I start working there next month. I used to work at their department in Cardiff, just got transferred here.

"Are you from London originally?" She had assumed as much based on his accent.

"Yeah, I grew up here," he confirms. "What about you?"

"I've lived in London all my life, doesn't look like that will ever change."

"Do you want it too?"

She’s momentarily taken off guard by the question. "I don't know. Guess I just always thought I'd to something more with my life than just..." she trailed of, not sure herself what was the end to that sentence. 

"I was sure I'd grow up to be either an astronaut or James Bond, sometimes life doesn't work out the way you'd hoped."

She couldn’t help but laugh. "Guess not."

The conversation seemed to flow effortlessly after that, they talked amicably about everything and nothing. She found out that he loves bananas, has doctorates in physics and astronomy and had spent two years backpacking through Europe. Rose told him about growing up at the estate, how she and Shareen used their combined savings to buy a shared car that was stolen after a week and about her unsettled relationship with Mickey. It was weird how comfortable she felt sharing with a complete stranger things she hadn’t even told her best friends. Although, she supposed he was a little less of a stranger now, that notion made something warm spread in her chest.

When she eventually casts a glance at her clock she was stunned to realize they’d been talking for over two hours. "Oh shoot, I have to go. I promised Shareen I'd help her shop for her party."

"Right, well… thanks for the company."

"You too, I had nice time."

"Maybe I'll see you here... tomorrow?" he asked, nervously tugging on his ear.

Normally she never comes here on her days off, but the prospect of seeing him again made something tug at her heart. "Yeah, tomorrow.

The smile that breaks out across his face takes her breath away and it isn’t until she meets up with Shareen who asks what she's smiling about that she realized she was grinning just as widely.


	4. Chapter 4

When Rose and Shareen arrived at Moon Thai Restaurant Mickey was already there waiting for them. Shareen took the seat opposite him; her mountain of shopping bags taking up the rest of the bench, leaving Rose no other option than taking the seat next to Mickey. She was careful not to sit too close but Mickey breached the space between them instantly, holding up his menu for her to see.

"You guys got everything for the party?" he asked, eyeing all the bags with an inquisitive eye.

"Pretty much. I just hope I got enough snacks for everyone," Shareen fretted.

"You almost emptied the entire store. You buy any more snacks you will have to get a bigger apartment in order to fit it all," Rose teased her friend, causing Shareen to roll her eyes.

Rose grinned widely, then turned her attention to the menu. "God, I’m starving." She suddenly became aware of Mickey watching her intently. "What?" She unconsciously brought her hand up to smooth down her hair, his regard making her self-conscious. Was there something on her face?

"You're certainly in a better mood today," Mickey noted, a strange resonance in his voice that she couldn’t place.

Shareen snickered. "No kidding, when we stood in line at Tesco she actually started humming."

Rose could feel a blush spreading across her face which didn’t go unnoticed by her friends, causing Mickey to furrow his brows as his gaze narrowed. She went back to inspecting the menu, taking a great interest in reading the specials.

"I’ve got to go to the loo," Shareen excused herself, leaving the two of them alone.

A heavy silence fell over them as Rose read through the menu for the third time. She could still feel Mickey’s eyes on her, his intense scrutinizing beginning to make her uncomfortable. "You know what you want?" she asked, still not meeting his gaze.

"Yeah," he nodded, but didn’t elaborate. He finally averted his gaze and swallowed nervously as he appeared to gather his thoughts. His countenance was bashful as he addressed her, "So, I was thinking... about Shareen's party, we could, if you want, you and I could... go together."

Another silence followed as Rose desperately tried to think of how to reply. She didn’t want to hurt his feelings, but she knew she needed to make it clear where their relationship stood. "I'm not sure that's such a good idea."

"Why not?"

"Mickey… I really think it’s better if you and I are just friends."

She could see the disappointment he was trying to hide, but he still pressed on. "So, can’t two friends go to a party together?"

"Oh my God!" Shareen’s shrill shriek kept her from answering. "I just got a text from Adam asking if he and his friends can come to the party. Can you believe it?"

After that the attention was shifted to Shareen and her ill-conceived crush. For once Rose was more than happy to listen to her prattle on about Adam Mitchell.

* * *

The next day the cafe was just as crowded as it had been the previous day, however there was no sign of John. Waiting for her coffee Rose stretched on her toes trying to see the tables in the back, searching for a glimpse of wild hair and a pinstriped suit.

Maybe he'd already been here and left, they hadn't mentioned a specific time so she'd showed up the same time as the day before. Or maybe he wouldn't show up at all, perhaps he’d only been polite and wasn’t at all interested in spending more time with her. That thought saddened her more than it probably should, he was just some bloke for Christ sake.

Just as she was handed her drink she heard the bell above the door chiming and spun around to be meet by a rather familiar sight by now.

"Hi!"

"Rose, hello!" he greeted her, his face breaking into a wide smile.

"Your usual?" the girl behind the counter inquired, sporting a warmer smile than Rose had ever been graced with for the past few years while she'd been coming here.

"Yes, thank you."

Rose glanced around the shop, futilely looking for an empty table while waiting for John to pay for his drink. "It's rather full in here."

He nodded in silence, a slight blush creeping up his cheeks. "It's nice weather out, maybe we could find a bench somewhere in the park or..."

"Yeah, sounds great," she quickly agreed, cringing at how eager she sounded. But judging by John’s answering grin he wasn’t put off by her enthusiasm.

They made small talk as they walked towards the park located half a block away. Even though the park was in close proximity to Henrik’s she hadn’t really spent any time here since she was a kid. She had vague memories of picnics with her parents; her mom complaining about ants in the basket, her dad spilling juice all over their blanket, getting scolded for jumping in the fountain with her clothes on.

They found a bench slightly away from the path with a beautiful view of a small pond. A comfortable silence settled over them as they sat drinking their coffee.

Rose closed her eyes and basked in the warmth of the sunlight flowing across her face. She couldn’t remember the last time she felt this peaceful. She turned her attention to the man beside her, taking the opportunity to study his face. His slightly crooked nose, the light dusting of freckles covering his skin, that plump bottom lip. She was suddenly overcome with a desire to find out how those lips would feel pressed against her own. Heat flooded her cheeks at the direction her thoughts were taking.

As if he could feel her scrutiny he turned in her direction, the corner of his lips turning up. She swore she could feel her heart swell, he really had a beautiful smile.

"So, tell me, Rose Tyler. What exciting adventures have you gotten up to today?"

She let out a half-hearted chuckle. "Nothing exciting ever happens to me. This is pretty must the highlight of my day."

He arched an eyebrow in bemusement. "You must really like coffee."

"The coffee is pretty good," she conceded, "but I prefer the company."

She felt a wicked sense of delight in seeing the blush spread crimson across his face and she had to bite her bottom lip to keep herself from making a suggestive comment. She felt so comfortable in his company and so at ease when talking to him that she sometimes had to remind herself that they were still getting to know each other.

After taking a moment to collect himself John eventually broke the silence, nervously stuttering, "S-So this department store you work at, do they sell shoes?"

Rose couldn’t help but laugh, feeling any awkwardness her flirting had caused drain away. "Yeah, we sell shoes."

"Oh, good. I’m in need of some new Converse." He held up his right foot for her to see his scuffed-up chucks.

"Well, you should come by, I’ll help you pick out a pair," she offered. And there was that smile again, she could feel her stomach starting to flutter. After that conversation flowed effortlessly once again.

Eventually the chill setting in as the sun set prompted them to part ways. With a bounce in her step and her heart lighter than in a long time Rose made her way home, finding herself looking forward to going to work for a change.

* * *

Henrik’s was unusually crowded for a Monday keeping her busier than usual, but she couldn’t help shooting glances at the shoe department in case John showed up.

She was folding shirts when she finally spotted him. Swiftly she began making her way towards him but came to a halt when she noticed there was someone with him; a red headed woman who he appeared to be in a deep conversation with. She felt her heart drop to her stomach, he hadn't mentioned a girlfriend but that didn't necessarily mean he didn't have one. Then again it could be his sister or his cousin or something. Oh god, what if she was his wife? No, he didn't wear a ring. Surely he would have mentioned if he was seeing someone?

She felt as if she knew him so well, she had to remind herself that she’d only meet this man five days ago. Stealing herself she called out his name, "John?"

"Rose," he exclaimed in delight as he spun around to face her, wearing a smile that made her knees grow week and the knot in her stomach began to dissipate.

"Find what you're looking for?"

"Yeah, I was just... going to get a new pair of chucks."

The woman he was with rolled her eyes and turned her attention to the boots section, but Rose noticed that she kept sneaking glances their way, apparently just as curious about Rose as Rose was about her.

Ignoring the woman’s scrutiny she asked him, "What colour do you want?"

"I was thinking maybe red."

"All right, I’ll go get a pair from the stockroom. What size are you?"

"Nine."

"I'll be right back."

A thorough search of the stockroom revealed that there was no red converse anywhere to be found. She grabbed a pair of maroon ones instead hoping he wasn’t to set on the colour.

When she came back out to the store John and his friend, and at this point Rose was fairly sure she was not his girlfriend, was once again engrossed in conversation. Or rather, the woman appeared to be doing most of the talking while John looked like he wanted the floor to open up and swallow him whole.

"I’m afraid we are out of red, we should get new ones in the beginning of next month. I did find some maroon ones, if you wa-"

"Maroon sounds perfect," he interrupted excitedly.

"When are you ever going to wear maroon shoes, just get black ones," the ginger woman intervened, proving that she was paying more attention to them than she was pretending.

"I already have black ones, besides I can wear maroon with my blue suit," John insisted.

"You may want to try them on, make sure they fit," Rose suggested.

He accepted the shoebox from her; their fingers brushing slightly, causing a shiver to run through her. The ginger woman cleared her throat, apparently having had enough of being left out of the conversation.

John appeared slightly startled at the noise, as if he had forgotten the other woman was there. "Right, sorry. Rose this is Donna, she's my... she's a family friend. Donna, this is Rose."

"Hello." Rose held out her hand in greeting, which the woman, Donna, shook enthusiastically.

"Nice to meet you."

"You too."

John in the meantime had taken of his left shoe and put on the maroon one and was bouncing slightly on his heels. Donna rolled her eyes again, but Rose thought he looked rather adorable.

"Does it fit?"

"Like a glove. Or... a shoe in this case."

Donna snorted at his pun, causing John to blush and Rose to let out a soft laugh.

"Were you looking to buy something else?"

"No, no, I'm good. Donna?"

"No, probably time to get back to the office," she sighed, not seeming particularly keen on the thought. Rose could certainly relate, although today was turning out far better than usual considering the soft smile on the man before her.

"I'll ring you up," Rose offered, leading them to the check out. Trisha who was currently working the cash register gave her a curious look, but thankfully didn’t say anything.

"That will be 54,99."

He handed her his credit card, and she couldn’t resist taking a glance at his full name. John Smith. It struck her as odd that such an unusual man would have such an ordinary name.

She took extra care in wrapping up the shoebox. "There you go. The receipt is in the bag."

"Thank you." He accepted the bag but made no move to leave. Rose wanted to keep talking to him, but she was mindful of the other customers that had begun forming a line behind him. John seemed to become aware of it as well as the man standing behind him cleared his throat loudly. "Well, I got to…"

"Right." She suddenly realized that she had no idea when, or even if, she would see him again so she hastened to ask, "Maybe I’ll see you later? At the coffee shop?"

"Yes!" he exclaimed, then seemed to realize he’d spoken a bit too loud and added in a softer voice. "That would be… yes."

"My shift ends at four," Rose informed him, unable to keep the smile of her face at his obvious excitement. It was nice to know it wasn’t just her that was eager for them to spend more time together. John gave her a slight wave as Donna more or less dragged him out of the store.


End file.
